


Truth Whispered In Silence

by zams



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Thor (Movies)
Genre: Angst, Gen, M/M, Pre-Thor: The Dark World, Prison, Songfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-26
Updated: 2013-11-26
Packaged: 2018-01-02 18:15:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,379
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1059975
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zams/pseuds/zams
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <em>In prison, Loki stops counting the days after a week. There is no reason to do so. Instead, he plans and plots, listens and watches. And then Thor appears outside his cell, curiously unexpected, and ruins everything.</em>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	Truth Whispered In Silence

**Author's Note:**

> Essentially gen, but vaguely implied past Thor/Loki. Spoilers only as far as the trailers are concerned.
> 
> Thanks to **Taylor** for a read-through and her suggestions.
> 
> This fic was inspired by the song [Through Glass](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GIzDsGyxsQM) by Stone Sour (YouTube link).

  
_I'm looking at you through the glass_  
 _Don't know how much time has passed_  
 _And all I know is that it feels like forever_  
 ****_How do you feel? That is the question_  
 _But I forget you don't expect an easy answer_  
 **Through Glass - Stone Sour**

+++

Loki stops counting the days after a week. There is no reason to do so. The guards lose interest in taunting him within a few days, their attention turning to the constant influx of rowdier prisoners that is undoubtedly Thor’s doing. As Loki pays no obvious attention to the happenings outside his cell, the guards quickly loosen their tongues, seemingly forgetting Loki’s quiet presence as they gossip and complain in equal measures, Loki attentively listening to their exchanges as he pretends to be absorbed in a book.

Indeterminate time passes this way, Loki being unobtrusive, quietly planning and plotting as he files away the valuable information the guards unthinkingly and readily discard. Though Loki presents a calm demeanor, rage simmers just below the surface, barely held back by even Loki’s force of will. His last conversation with Odin is ever present in his mind, sustaining his anger. Loki will not soon forget this injustice, Odin leaving him in the dungeons to rot, to be _forgotten_. It is intolerable, and there are times when Loki nearly shatters the illusion that he has worked to build because the urge to scream, to break, to _destroy_ is nearly overwhelming.

Slowly, Loki manages to find some semblance of calm, not forgetting his revenge, never that, but contenting himself with thoughts of the future, when all he will be able to plot in this cell, where Odin, in his arrogance, no doubt thinks Loki lies beaten, defeated and penitent. It is that very arrogance that Loki will exploit and use to finally conquer Odin, and have the utter triumph for which he longs.

It is no less than Loki deserves and no less than Loki desires in the darkest places in his heart, and then Thor comes, disrupting everything, _ruining_ everything as he always does, just when Loki had nearly convinced himself that Thor was no longer a concern of his and that Thor had forsaken him.

Loki has long been proficient in disguising his reactions and only allowing others to see what he desires them to see. It is no hardship, then, to betray none of his surprise when Thor appears outside his cell, curiously unexpected. His anger is more difficult to conceal, but Loki keeps still on his bed, never faltering as he tosses and catches an empty cup above his head, for all the world appearing as if he does not sense Thor’s presence just there on the other side of Loki’s prison, so close and yet never further away.

But sense him Loki does, as sure as if Thor were in this very bed with him, solid and hot, a remembrance of how they used to be. Curiosity peaked, Loki waits and slyly watches Thor while wondering what could have possibly led Thor down to the dungeons to visit after so long. The passage of time means little to Loki locked in this cell, and it feels both an eternity and only a moment since Loki laid eyes upon his brother.

Seconds slip away, and still Thor does not speak, nor does he move. The guards milling about pay him no attention that Loki can observe, and suddenly Loki realizes: Mother. This is Frigga’s handiwork, Loki is sure of it. Casting a spell of invisibility is no easy task, but for Frigga, whose talents far surpass even Loki’s, it is a simple matter, and Loki is hard pressed to suppress a smirk at Frigga’s cunning. Undoubtedly Frigga promised Thor that he would be hidden from even Loki’s gaze, but clearly Frigga had another plan altogether in mind. While Loki is unsure if he could hide someone from all eyes except one, there is no question that Frigga could manage it. There is no question that Mother would know that Loki would sense the magic around Thor as if it were tangible.

With this in mind, Loki continues as he if he is unaware that he is no longer alone, and Thor continues to stare. For long minutes, there is no sound other than Loki’s steady breath in his ears, the normal noises of the prison fading away as Loki begins to feel trapped by Thor’s gaze. Loki can easily read the thoughts lurking behind Thor’s blank face, can easily sense what Thor’s feeling as he has always been able. Anger, certainly, over Loki’s actions on Midgard, despair as his hope that Loki can be saved is rapidly diminishing, longing for the better days of the past when they were united as one, their bond whole and complete, not torn, bloody, and shredded nearly beyond recognition.

There is so much that has been left unsaid between them, so much confusion and mutual hurt that Loki is suddenly grateful that Thor attempted to mask his presence. Loki’s not sure that he would have any words for Thor had he come and spoke plainly, at least not any words that were not designed to inflict pain and guilt. There are no easy answers, no simple explanations for all the bad blood left in a thick trail behind them, no matter how much Thor may futilely wish there were. It is a wish borne from Thor’s childish longing for an easy scapegoat so that he may absolve Loki of all his sins, all his darkness and proudly call him “brother” once again.

That will never be. Loki has known that for too many years to count, and though Thor would deny it, he does as well. But Thor clings to hope, casting impossible wishes upon the stars that shine above Asgard like the fool he is. Loki has no use for such sentimentality, the same sentimentality that brought Thor to his cell this very night. Loki almost scoffs, derisive, but recovers before he can alert Thor. Loki counts the seconds that Thor watches him until finally Loki hears Thor sigh and murmur Loki's name. For the briefest of moments, Loki freezes, caught off guard by the sound and his own reaction to hearing Thor say his name that way, so whisper soft and tenderly, full of all the unvoiced feelings that remain between them, that always have always been between them.

It was clearly not meant for Loki's ears. Thor says nothing else, and finally he turns to leave. Loki tells himself that he wants Thor gone, wants Thor's offensive presence far away from Loki as possible, but thinking the lie does nothing to stop his heart from beating with a heavy ache that Loki cannot ignore no matter how he tries when Thor’s back is to him. Loki has the sudden irrational urge to call after Thor, to ask him not to leave Loki alone here to rot, but Loki brutally forces the impulse down, biting his tongue to keep his mouth shut. It would do no good to call for Thor, solve nothing and only tear the still bleeding wounds further open. Loki will not make himself vulnerable to Thor in that way, or give Thor such power over him. He will not let Thor see him this way. Loki sneers, rebelling at his momentary weakness, and then Thor says his name again, freezing the breath in Loki’s throat.

“You are my brother, Loki,” Thor whispers, “no matter how much you may wish otherwise.”

The admission is too much for Loki to bear stoically.

 _Thor_. It is always Thor. Loki can never escape him, will never be free of him, and it is Thor’s fault, _everything_. No matter how far or how long Loki could run, he would never be freed from Thor's claim on his very soul.

Squeezing the cup tightly in his fist, Loki tries to control his rampaging emotions, desperate to force every drop of concern and love for Thor out of his heart until it is as black as night and he can no longer feel anything. And when Loki throws it against the wall in his rage, blowing it up with a simple thought, Loki tells himself it’s satisfaction he feels.

**END**


End file.
